


The Photograph

by Jollytr



Category: British Actor RPF, Richard Armitage - Fandom
Genre: F/M, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-10-10
Updated: 2013-10-10
Packaged: 2017-12-29 01:16:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,184
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/999139
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jollytr/pseuds/Jollytr
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A simple photograph unhinged her.  Time to get a grip and get back to the real world, leaving fangirling far behind ... or so she thought</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Photograph

It wasn’t a particularly good photo … in fact everything about it could be considered quite poor.  The lighting, focus and composition sucked.   The subject looked haggard (and that’s being kind).   The whole picture was a far cry from the thousands which earned him his very own army of fans.

But it was not posed, not styled, not a PR pitch.    If a photo could be real, this was.  It was him without polish, without pretense, without a mask.  It was … him.

She had sunk lower than she ever thought possible.   She was an intelligent woman, damn it. And yet she had actually downloaded the photo onto her phone so she'd always have it near.   It stirred her.  It was a freaking picture – it meant nothing … it meant a lot.   

How could one photograph wreck such havoc in her life?   Every time she looked at it, she was taken out of herself and that scared her.   Looking into those eyes, she honestly wanted to know him.   It wasn't about a handsome face or a commanding presence. There was something in that photo which hinted at someone so much deeper than the affable gentleman she watched in interviews. There was a whole universe behind his eyes.

 

 _Who was he? Who was the real person? Crap – was this how stalkers started?   Obsession, delusions and psychosis would surely follow if she didn't put an end to this ridiculousness._ _Get a grip girl!   Get back to your real life – your really nice real life._

She took Ricky to the local dog park for his Social Hour.    There were always lots of familiar faces – both canine and human.   And these were real people – not ones for whom she had created a whole legend based on a photo.   Yes, the dog park was a great idea.  Ricky would run and play. She'd chat with some nice people. On the way home she’d stop for a treat for both of them. Some chocolate ice cream for her and a frozen yogurt for Ricky. Yes, that would be lovely. Real life in the real world. No more "what if ..." fantasy nonsense.

Ricky pranced and frolicked at the dog park.  He loved everything about it … the dogs, the humans, the attention, the running, the sniffing – and especially how happy his human was.   He thought she glowed when they had time at the park.  The park was good for Ricky _and_ his lovely human.

Ricky made a new friend … well, he was always making new friends.  He couldn't help it, he was just a happy, sociable dog. Today’s bright new face belonged to a nervous Border Collie whose human was clearly not very good at being a pack leader.  Oh well, that wouldn’t stop Ricky from enticing his new friend to run and play.

She laughed at Ricky and his antics.   He was always playing big brother to the new 'kids' in the park.  Today was no exception; he’d found a timid Border Collie friend and was showing off for him.   She wondered where the collie's human was because she couldn’t figure out which one belonged to him.   Searching the crowd, she thought she spotted the human in question - or at least someone who was somewhat interested in Ricky's new pal.  He was a tall man wearing a leather jacket, flat cap and aviator sunglasses.   _Tsk, dogs had a thing about eye contact, he shouldn’t wear shades in the park._

She watched and listened as he called ‘Bailey’ to no avail.   Yes, that was the collie's human. Poor fellow - he didn't have a clue. She chuckled "amateur" to herself.  Normally she’d just quietly offer assistance but today she was feeling a little naughty so she decided to show off a bit.   She knew by the dogs' body language that she was going to look like a genius with the moves she intended to use.  She called Ricky who came right away, with Bailey following close behind just as she thought he would.  Ricky automatically sat in front of her as he always did.   She looked at Bailey quietly commanding him to sit and with a flick of her wrist he did just that.   What no one else saw was the surreptitious dispensing of treats to the dogs who were then more than eager to do her bidding.   She looked like a dog whisperer and felt a little smug.

Bailey’s human walked the short distance over to her and was visibly impressed.   He couldn’t even get Bailey to come for supper.  “How did you do that?”  He asked, in awe.

“Oh, I’d tell you but then I’d have to kill you.”  She laughed.   Looking around in a mock conspiratorial way, she stage whispered, “Treats, it's all in the treats … but don’t tell anyone I said so.”

His rich, sonorous laughter was a warm wave washing over her.   That deep, rumbling laugh ... wow, she could almost feel reverberations. He sounded a little like ... no ... no,  " _Stop it Girlfriend - don't go there"_ , she chided herself. _"Quick, think about something else ... think about the dogs."_

It was the perfect time to show off the dogs and share a laugh.  She showed Bailey and his human several of Ricky's favourite tricks, much to the delight of both canines and humans. Ricky chased & retrieved an invisible stick; refused to take treats from her hand if she said they were from the dog catcher; wiped his brow when she asked him if he was exasperated; and of course the standard stay, sit, speak, lay down, shake a paw and high-five.

“You can teach Bailey any of these things.  Would you like me to show you how?” She asked, still smiling at Ricky's Dog Catcher trick.

“Sure, I’d love to.  It will really impress my brother when he gets home. He can't get Bailey to do anything either ... and it's his dog.”

“First thing … ok, treats are the first thing … so second thing, you need to establish your authority.  Part of that means eye contact, so you’re going to have to lose the cool shades.”

“Ok.”  He said, removing his sunglasses and hanging them off his jacket pocket.  “What next?”

She was never more certain how important it was to stop the blasted fangirling.   Now everyone she met looked like her celebrity crush.   _Good heavens._ She gave herself a mental shake and made the decision to delete that photo from her phone at the earliest opportunity. She must be having a seizure or maybe a stroke. Maybe she should make an appointment with a shrink.  Yes, tomorrow she’d do that.   Today, she’d enjoy the company of a dog lover who just happened to look like that actor she so admired - that fellow in the photo.

As she pulled out some treats for him to use with Bailey, he smiled warmly and extended his hand, “Hi, I’m Richard.  Thanks for this!”

Was she hallucinating after all? Was he was that man in the photo? Yes, yes he was. But he was so much more than she ever could have imagined and the future would hold more for them than she ever could have wished.

**Author's Note:**

> photograph from Richard's interview with clickonline, autumn 2013.


End file.
